Trainee

You have been offered employment at a company in Denmark for a shorter period of time with education or training as the purpose.

Normal processing time
1 month

Processing fee
DKK 6,290,-

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What is a trainee?

A trainee is a person in training at a company. If you have been offered employment at a company in Denmark for shorter period of time with education or training as purpose, you can apply for a residence and work permit as a trainee. 

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What are the conditions?

To be granted a residence permit as a trainee, there must be a verified strategic cooperation or partnership between a company or organisation abroad and your Danish employer. 

Labour market and educational considerations must warrant your employment as a trainee. This will often be the case in the following situations:

  • You are employed in the parent, sister or subsidiary company of an international concern and you will be in Denmark temporarily to improve your skills at a Danish parent, sister or subsidiary company. Afterwards, you will return to your job abroad.
  • A Danish company, wishing to establish a subsidiary company abroad, will train you in Danish production, management etc. for the purpose of subsequently employing you at the subsidiary company abroad.
  • A Danish company has an established clientele in your home country and wishes to employ you to look after their interests. Thus, firstly you have to be trained in Danish production and management in Denmark.

While in Denmark, you must follow an educational course relevant to the job you will be returning to abroad.

You must send a description of your course along with your application.

Your salary and terms of employment must correspond to Danish standards. Your salary, holiday entitlements, terms of notice etc. must not be worse than the standards within the professional field where you are going to work.

When you apply, you must attach a copy of your employment contract or job offer. All employment conditions must appear from the contract or the job offer.    

You can see which information the employment contract must, at least, include here

If SIRI has any doubts about whether your salary and employment conditions correspond to the Danish standards, we can ask experts in the field, e.g. one of the regional labour market councils, to assess your conditions. 

One of the conditions for a residence permit under this scheme is that an accompanying family member (spouse, cohabiting partner, children or in certain circumstances other family members) has not had its residence permit revoked more than once due to lack of a required work permit.

 

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What are my rights, if I am granted a permit?

What are you allowed to do with a Danish residence and work permit as a trainee? – and what are you not allowed to do?

You can only work in the company that you have been granted a permit to work in.

Furthermore you are allowed to take up unpaid voluntary work.

If you are offered a new job, you must apply for a new permit. This also applies if you are offered a new position within the same company. 

If you wish to take a sideline job, you have to obtain a separate permit. You can read more about sideline employment here

A Danish residence and work permit does not allow you to work in other Schengen countries.

You can read more about working conditions in Denmark and 'The Danish labour market model' here.

You must be able to support yourself and your family during your stay. You are not allowed to receive benefits under the terms of the Active Social Policy Act.

If you or your family members receive such benefits during your stay, your permit can be revoked – and you will lose the right to stay in Denmark. 

If an authority, e.g. a municipality, disburses benefits to foreign nationals, SIRI will be notified.

 You can see a list of benefits that you are not allowed to receive here.

A residence and work permit allows you to stay in Denmark for the period of time your permit is valid.

In addition, a permit allows you to stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days within the latest 180 days period. The permit, however, does not allow you to work in other Schengen countries.

You must not give up your Danish address or stay abroad for longer than 6 successive months. A violation will result in the lapse of your permit. This means that you will lose your right to stay in Denmark.

If you need to stay abroad for a longer period of time, e.g. if you are stationed abroad for a period of time by your employer, you can apply for a dispensation to prevent your permit from lapsing.

You can read more about permit lapse and dispensation options here.

With a residence permit in Denmark, you are entitled to free Danish lessons. However, you must have turned 18 years and have your Danish address registered in the Danish National Register.

If you have a residence permit in Denmark based on work, study, etc. you have to pay a deposit before you can start receiving lessons. Be aware that you can lose your deposit if you do not pass the different modules within a specific timeframe.

Your municipality of residence is obliged to offer you Danish lessons and refer you to a language centre. If you have not been offered Danish lessons within a month after registering your address in Denmark, you can contact your municipality.

You will (typically) be taught together with other foreign nationals who have arrived in Denmark recently.

If you are going to stay and work in Denmark, there are a number of things to acquaint yourself with. Depending on your personal situation, you might need other important information and options.

The portal lifeindenmark.dk provides you with information, links and in many cases also options concerning the most important subjects such as:

  • MitID

  • The CPR register

  • Health card

  • Tax matters

  • Holiday entitlements 

  • School and daycare

  • Housing

  • Danish lessons

  • Car registration and driver’s license

 

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How long can I stay in Denmark?

If you apply from abroad, you can be granted a residence permit valid for 1 month before you start working. It will give you the time to settle in Denmark. When you apply, you must declare that you can support yourself and any accompanying family members during this time.  If you do not declare this, your residence permit will be valid for 14 days before you start working.

If you apply in Denmark, your residence permit will be valid from the day you start working.

You can be granted a residence and work permit valid for 1 year at a time – however, the validity cannot exceed the length of your contract.

The total duration of the trainee stay cannot exceed 24 months. 

If you find a new job, you must submit a new application based on the new job – it can once again be as a trainee or it can be based on another of our work schemes. When you have submitted your application based on the new job, you do not have to wait for your permit before you start working. You can start your new job on the day you submit the new application.

If your employment is extended, you must apply for an extension of your residence and work permit.

It is very important that you apply for an extension before your permit expires.

If you submit your application for extension in time, you can stay in Denmark and continue to work even though your permit is expiring.

A residence permit can only be valid until 3 months before the expiry date of your passport.

If your passport has a shorter validity than the otherwise possible period of stay, your residence permit will be shortened. This means that the validity of your residence permit will be shorter than it could be. When you have renewed your passport, you can apply for an extension of your residence permit - however, this can only be done 3 months before your permit expires at the earliest. 

Read more about the passport requirements

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What should I do, if I lose or change my job?

If you are granted a permit based on the scheme, your residence permit is linked to your job in Denmark. Your employment is the basis for your permit. 

You must always inform SIRI if you lose or change your job.

Your work permit is limited to the employment that is the basis for your permit.  You are not allowed to work in other positions than the one stated in your permit.This also applies if you are offered a new position in the same company.

If you find a new job while working in Denmark, you must submit a new application for a residence and work permit with information on your new employment. When you have submitted your new application, you can start working even though you have not been granted a permit yet.

Read more about the job change rule

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Can my family be granted a residence permit?

A residence and work permit based on a job in Denmark allows your family to come with you to Denmark.

A permit can be granted to your spouse, registered or cohabiting partner as well as children under the age of 18 living at home.

Read more about accompanying family members here.

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What more to know before I apply?

An application for a residence permit on the basis of work must be submitted to the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI).

As a general rule, you must have an employment agreement with a company registered in Denmark to be able to apply.

Before submitting your application, you must create a case order ID for your application and pay a fee to cover SIRI’s case processing expenses. You can do this on the “How to apply” tab to the right. Here you also find the relevant application form, AR1.

Your employer must fill in one of two parts of the form. Your employer must be the first to fill in his or her part. When your employer has completed his or her part, a reference number and password will be shown, which your employer must pass on to you. You are then able to open the online application and complete your part.

If you have granted your employer power of attorney to handle the application on your behalf, your employer must use the AR6 form. This form is only filled in by the employer.

Please note that, as a rule, SIRI will refuse your application for a residence permit on new grounds, if the application is submitted prematurely in relation to the wished for start date for your stay in Denmark.

If you submit such an application earlier than 6 months before your stay in Denmark will begin, you can expect a refusal to your application. If you have paid SIRI's case processing fee, you will not receive a refund of the fee.

SIRI will contact you or your employer if we need further information to process your case.

What do you want to print?

Below you will find a step-by-step guide to submitting an application to the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI).

It is important that you have carefully read the conditions for being granted a residence permit before you begin step 1. You can do this on the tab “Need to know” on the left.

If you are a commuter and will not be residing in Denmark and for this reason will only apply for a work permit, you do not need to create a case order ID or pay a fee. Instead you kan go directly to step 3. Read more about commuting here.

It is a good idea to gather the necessary documents before you start to complete the application form. You can use the check list below.

If you submit documents not written in English, German, Norwegian, Swedish or Danish, you must also submit certified translations into Danish or English.

You must submit:

You can see which information the employment contract must include here

Expect to use

30 minutes

completing the application

2 persons

You and your employer are each required to complete a part of the form.

In this step you and your employer have access to the relevant application forms.

Make sure that you have completed all the preceeding steps before you begin.

All our application forms contain careful instructions on how to complete the form and what kind of documents you must submit along with the form.

You can read more about how we process your personal data here.

You can choose between these two online application forms:

  • AR1 online, in which you and your employer each are required to complete separate parts of the form
  • AR6 online, in which you grant your employer power of attorney to apply on your behalf

In the AR1 form your employer must complete the first of the two parts of the form. When your employer has completed his or her part, a reference number and password will be shown, which your employer must pass on to you. You are then able to open the online application and complete your part.

In the AR6 form only your employer must complete the form

Read more about power of attorney and download an approved power of attorney standard here.

Make sure you have all documents ready in digital form, in order to attach them as you complete the application form.

If you do not have a MitID, you must sign, scan and attach to the application the document 'Sworn declarations and information'.

You can download the document 'Sworn declarations and information' here (also available in the form)

 

Use the form AR1                    Use the form AR6

 

Please note that it is mandatory to use this application form. Under special circumstances, you can be exempted from the requirement to use an online application form. You can read more here.

When you apply for a residence permit, you must have your biometric features recorded. This means that you must have a facial photo taken and your fingerprints recorded. The facial photo and your fingerprints will be stored on a microchip embedded in the residence card, which will be issued to you if you are granted a permit.

If you do not agree to have your biometric features recorded, your application will be rejected. This means that your application will not be processed.

Read more about biometrics here.

You must have your biometric features recorded no later than 14 days after you submitted your application.

If you are unable to have your biometric features recorded within the time limit of 14 days, because you are unable to book an appointment at a Danish diplomatic mission, you can inform us of the appointed time you will have your biometrics recorded. This way you can avoid having your application rejected.

You are abroad

You can have your biometric features recorded at a Danish diplomatic mission or an application centre in the country, where you reside.

See the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ list of diplomatic missions or application centres where you can have your biometric features recorded.

In certain countries Denmark does not have a diplomatic mission or application centre. In these instances the list will refer you to one of the Norwegian missions with which Denmark has made an agreement or to the nearest Danish diplomatic mission or application centre in the region.

If you submit your application to a Norwegian diplomatic mission, you must also submit one passport photo. If you are granted a residence permit based on your application, you must within a specific time frame afte you entry to Denmark have your biometric features recorded.

We recommend that you visit the local diplomatic mission’s webpage to get more information before you submit the application. The individual diplomatic mission can have additional requirements regarding payment of additional fees, submission of additional passport photos or additional copies of the application.

You are in Denmark

If you are residing legally in Denmark, you are normally able to have your biometric features recorded in Denmark. This is the case, if you:

  • hold a valid visa
  • are exempt from the visa requirement or
  • already hold a valid residence permit.

Read more about the legal residence requirement and submission of your application in Denmark. 

You can have your biometric features recorded in one of SIRI’s branch offices. 

If you plan to have your biometrics recorded in  one of SIRI’s branch offices, you must remember to book an appointment. 

If you are a commuter and does not reside in Denmark and for this reason will only apply for a work permit, you do not need to have your biometrics recorded. Read more about commuters here.

You have submitted your application succesfully if you have:

  • created a case order ID
  • paid the fee
  • submitted the application
  • had your biometric features recorded

You can see the normal case processing time to the right on this page. When we make a decision in your case, you will receive an answer.

SIRI will contact you or your employer if we need further information to process your case.

Read more about what you can expect while you are waiting for an answer.

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Last updated 31-10-2024 - Published by: SIRI

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